Iowa Covenanters Donate Grain Auger to Asia Farmers

POMEROY, IA (June 18, 2010) – An agricultural operation run by a Christian businessman in Southeast Asia will get a large contribution thanks to members of the Pomeroy Covenant Church who dismantled a 57-foot grain auger on Wednesday.

Four farmers and an Evangelical Covenant Church missionary spent the sunny morning disassembling the auger, which was donated by one of the men. They used a loader tractor to support the machinery as they took it apart. See additional photos below.

Afterwards, said one of the farmers, David Welander, “In traditional Swedish fashion, we had coffee and tea-rings with cheese for morning lunch!”

Pomeroy’s connection to work in Southeast Asia began about 10 years ago when they sent grain bins to Covenant missionaries in the region. “God is doing great things in Southeast Asia through Christian businesses that are supplying incomes and economic development.” Resources often are scarce, however.

Welander added that the region also suffers from a lack of technical expertise, but missionaries have increased the skill levels of many people through good training. He is excited that the people receiving the equipment will be able to re-assemble it without assistance.

Welander hopes to encourage more donations that can be provided by early July. “There is a lot of used agricultural equipment in Iowa and all of the Midwest that is still usable, but is now too small or outdated for today’s larger farms,” he said.

The auger dismantled on Wednesday will be shipped along with other equipment, including donations that are still needed by early July, Welander said. Needs include grain bins, grain drying equipment, grain cleaners/seed cleaners, soybean processing equipment and garden equipment. If you are interested in donating equipment, funds or finding out more about the effort to help Southeast Asian, email Welander.